The best/worst team names in sports?

[Sunstroke]

I guess it could be a regional thing... I grew up in the Southwest, and we vacationed in San Diego (coincidentally, at Mission Beach) when I was a kid. 

I actually wasn't surprised that you didn't know the origins of the Padres name...I was just surprised you didn't know what the word "Padre" meant. South Florida has a fairly high Latino influence, maybe not as much as Arizona, but I still figured the word "Padre" would be common knowledge, like "adios," "manana" and other Spanish terms that have made their way into the English lexicon. If I told someone "see ya manana," and they asked "what is manana?" I would be similarly surprised.

[Dave Gray]

Yeah, I know what the word literally means.  But I don't know why you'd have a team called the San Diego Dads.

[Sunstroke]

Yeah, I know what the word literally means.  But I don't know why you'd have a team called the San Diego Dads.

Yeah... Padres = Friars = Priests

They aren't really the San Diego Dads as much as they are the San Diego Priests.

[Dave Gray]

Yeah, it makes total sense now.  Lesson learned.

[Sunstroke]

I take a little bit of personal humor over the fact that I, a confirmed atheist, have been a lifelong fan of the Priests.

[Spider-Dan]

That's like the rationale for the naming of the Charlotte Hornets... if you need to reference some arcane historical factoid that is really only known to locals, that's not something that's really identified with that city.  No one needs to explain the Steelers or the Brewers or the Pistons.

And I don't think the Devils are a particularly good example of a good name.

[Brian Fein]

Padres mascot: Swinging Friar

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

historical factoid that is really only known to locals, that's not something that's really identified with that city. 

I disagree, the best names are those in which ONLY the locals get it.  Kinda like an inside joke. 

[Brian Fein]

I'll take a swing:

NFL:
Best: Pittsburgh Steelers
Worst: Houston Texans

MLB:
Best: Milwaukee Brewers
Worst: Kansas City Royals/Washington Nationals/Seattle Mariners

NBA:
Best: Minnesota Timberwolves/Dallas Mavericks
Worst: Memphis Grizzlies/Brooklyn Nets/Washington Wizards

NHL:
Best: Toronto Maple Leafs
Worst: Columbus Blue Jackets

[Sunstroke]

That's like the rationale for the naming of the Charlotte Hornets... if you need to reference some arcane historical factoid that is really only known to locals, that's not something that's really identified with that city.  No one needs to explain the Steelers or the Brewers or the Pistons.

And I don't think the Devils are a particularly good example of a good name.

I disagree on almost every point you made there...

* The team names are supposed to have more significance to locals than some nameless Joe Schmoe on the other side of the country. Joe Schmo up in Connecticut isn't buying any tickets for the Padres home games.
* Talk to 100 young people from the West Coast, and I'll bet you have to explain the "Steelers" meaning to half of them.
* The Jersey Devil myth is one of the great American urban legends, which, imo, makes the name "The New Jersey Devils" nothing short of brilliant.

[Brian Fein]

^^ I have no idea what the Jersey Devil is. Never heard of it.  Except for David Clarkson.  He sucks.

[bsfins]

The jersey Devil,AKA the Leeds Devil..The story is 7th or 13 the child of the leeds family,supposedly born demon like.The Myth is it's supposedly still in the New Jersey Pine Barron's? Barrens....

Modified to add...
Ok, googled to see how close I was off the top of my head...it was the 13th child of the Leeds family,but it's the pine barrens,not Barrons.

I love folklore,legend.....

[Spider-Dan]

1) The team name isn't supposed to represent anything but whatever the owner wants it to.  I personally think that it's better when a team's mascot reflects something that a city is widely known for, not some obscure piece of local trivia, but that's me.
2) The collapse of American manufacturing does make both the Steelers' and the Pistons' names less weighty.  That being said, if we're going to survey young people to determine relevance, the Anaheim Mighty Ducks have had the best name of all time.
3) I had never even heard of the Jersey Devil.  I'll retract my statement on that one.

[Sunstroke]

1) The team name isn't supposed to represent anything but whatever the owner wants it to. 

Is that from some official modern era "Team Name Rules and Regulations" document, or does it go all the way back to the third tablet of God's Commandments that Moses broke when he stumbled while coming down from Mount Sinai? 

[Dave Gray]

More names for the Wizards: Presidents, Colonials, Rebels, Revolutionaries, Revolution, etc.